The Mech Touch

that had caused her to remain stuck in a dying state all of this time.

Yet before he could join his mother and sister to celebrate this happy occasion, an event began to unfold in an entirely different galaxy that

completely ruined his mood.

Ves could no longer express care for everything that had happened to his mother today, because his real human self had come under great threat

at this time!

Back in the Red Ocean, Ves stood up from his office chair and looked out of the window of his Royal Mansion.

Although he couldn\'t quite see it, the phasewater in his blood allowed him to feel that the fabric of space all around him had begun to shake in a

minute fashion.

This was not concerning by itself, but the problem was that it was happening everywhere!

The entire city, the entire planet and most probably the entire star system became affected by an enormous spatial disturbance that originated

from far away.

As he narrowed his eyes and tried his best to attune his senses, he could not figure out where the disturbances came from, only that it was

powerful enough to affect entire regions of space.

Alarms began to ring throughout the city.

"Sir!" Nitaa broke her characteristic silence and stomped forward with her armored form. "The Mech Trade Association and the Common Fleet

Alliance have issued a joint priority declaration. They have both imposed the highest state of emergency in the Red Ocean and the second-highest

state of emergency in the Milky Way."

"What does that mean!"

His chief bodyguard paused for a brief moment in order to look up additional information. "Sir, from now on, every human must unquestionably

obey the instructions of the Big Two without hesitation. Any sign of disobedience is an immediate cause for termination."

Ves widened his eyes!

If the events unfolding in the Red Ocean had deteriorated to this point, then the crisis hatched by the aliens truly posed a humongous threat to all

of the human colonies in this dwarf galaxy!

"What... what have the Big Two instructed us to do?" Ves asked in a voice that betrayed his fear.

"The MTA and CFA have only issued a single global instruction to every human in the Red Ocean. They... have told us to cease all non-essential

work, suspend all travel if possible and flee to the nearest shelter that can be completely enclosed and has a sufficient supply of food and water."

"Anything else?!"

"No, sir. That... is the only order that the mechers and fleeters have issued to us. They require nothing further of us. What is happening,

beyond our power. We cannot make any difference. The best we can do is to stay out of the way to the few that can do so. The last thing we should

do is to become a source of trouble and abuse the state of emergency."

Despair welled up in his mind. Even though he recognized the truth in this statement, it depressed him to an enormous degree that for all of his

growth, he still hadn\'t come close to reaching the level where he could protect himself from every threat!

Whatever galaxy-wide threat the aliens had just hatched, it was of such great magnitude that perhaps not even the Big Two could resolve!

After all, humanity had only conquered a small portion of the dwarf galaxy. Much of the Red Ocean including its resource-rich galactic center

remained firmly in the hands of the major alien races!

Ves closed his eyes and took a deep breath before he firmed his resolve.

"This is no time to fool around. Let us obey the directive of the Big Two and ride out this storm."

He first summoned the Unending Regalia from the Vault of Eternity.

He planned to upgrade it yet again so that it could allow him to put up a much better fight than the last time he ended up in enemy territory, but

his other projects had occupied too much of his time.

Still, the Unending Regalia was not weak by any means. Ves instantly felt a lot more secure now that he wore his personal suit of combat armor.

Once he made sure he adopted a martial demeanor, he activated an emergency command of his own that enabled him to transmit a high-priority

emergency message that could reach his entire clan.

"Larkinsons!" Ves spoke with a stern expression. "You should have all heard about the state of emergency declared by the Big Two. I have no more

answers than any of you, but that is not important. A dangerous change is about to sweep the dwarf galaxy, and since we are currently in it, we will

all be affected by what the aliens are planning to do. There is no escape. We do not have the time to evacuate back to the Milky Way, and doing so

will violate the direct orders issued from above."

His words dispelled any notion about pulling out of Davute and flying all the way back to Bridgehead One to squeeze through the greater

beyonder gate.

"Stay strong, clansmen." Ves continued. "This is no time for our clan to be at our worst. Do your part in presenting the best of ourselves. I am

echoing the orders issued by the Big Two. 1 implore all of you to flee to the nearest shelter, preferably the ones built by our clan underneath the

Cat Nest. If you are stationed on any of our ships in space, then I recommend you put the vessels on lockdown and retreat to the most appropriate

shelters. Follow the emergency protocols and obey the instructions of your superiors. Survive. Remain patient. Avoid panic. Do what you can to

help yourself and your fellow Larkinson. Good luck."

This was all Ves could do to reassure his clansmen and hurry them to their shelters.

Before Ves left his office, he gazed up at the skies through the window and tried to deduce more information from what was happening.

The galactic net and all of the news portals were completely useless. Nobody knew what was going on, and even if a few people happened to make

the right guess, their opinions were drowned in a deluge of panic and hysteria!

This was why Ves tried to figure out the truth himself.

"Strange."

As a phase lord, if only a weak one, he was faintly able to get in touch with the galaxy-wide spatial disturbances.

He was too weak to do anything else, though, but he happened to know a certain design spirit that could do more.

"Phase King! Lend me a hand!"

As Ves opened up his mind towards the alien design spirit, his spatial awareness boosted to a much greater height!

The vague phasewater ripples that were previously too subtle for him to register properly had now become a lot more obvious!

There was a strange rhythm in the spatial disturbances that gave him the illusion of a million whales singing in harmony.

The Phase King\'s incredibly high sensitivity and affinity towards phasewater enabled him to glean a lot more clues from what was happening in

space.

First, the effect was generated all around the Red Ocean. The reason why this was possible was because a bunch of extremely powerful phase

whales had combined their forces and began to exert their power at different points in space!

Somehow, they not only managed to coordinate their actions in perfect synchronicity, but also managed to amplify their spatial powers through

unknown but undoubtedly large-scale means.

Their spatial disturbances were able to reach further and wider than anything they could accomplish on their own!

This wasn\'t the extent of the alien master plan.

The original spatial disturbances weren\'t enough to reach across the entire Red Ocean.

However, other phase whales and phase lords could pitch in by attuning themselves to the ripples of space and act as a relay to amplify the signal

in their local regions of space!

The huge amount of native gods spread throughout the dwarf galaxy directly strengthened this grand move beyond all proportions!

If not for the assistance of many millions of phase whales and phase lords, it was impossible for the alien\'s grand design to encompass so many

light-years of space!

The only caveat was that the amplification was not as strong in the most outer regions of the Red Ocean. Not enough native gods resided in these

remote places, and the few that did could not affect every possible patch of space.

It was enough!

Ves understood that the Krakatoa Middle Zone was affected in its totality. The Phase King saw no possible way to escape this entire trap!

The only action that the design spirit could do was to \'join\' the choir and assist the alien efforts.

"Don\'t do anything stupid! Ves immediately warned the whale. Do you best to protect yourself and your subjects. I don\'t know how this alien super-

move will affect your little kingdom, but you should hunker down just to be sure!"

Ves issued the same warning to all of his other design spirits. He had a feeling that whatever the aliens were doing would not fly past these

entities either!

is

It was only then that he chose to retreat.

There was no need for him to take the normal route. The Royal Mansion was connected to a secret tunnel that led straight into the strongest and most secure doomsday vault underneath the Cat Nest.

As he and his bodyguards descended deep underground, they eventually entered a solid chamber that was surrounded by metal walls that were thick enough to offer battleship-grade protection.

It had cost a massive amount of resources to build such a place, but Ves never felt more grateful about his decision to invest so much in a protective measure that might never be put to use if not for the current emergency.

"Papa! You\'re here!"

"I\'m scared, papa!"

"Miaaaaow!"

The vault could easily accommodate hundreds of the most important members of the Larkinson Clan. It was at roughly 30 percent capacity by the time Ves arrived.

He ignored the urgent inquiries of General Verle and Chief Minister Abigail Evern and moved straight to his wife and children.

Each of them had already changed into their protective suits, though Ves was not really satisfied with the level of protection that they offered.

At least their children were wearing their first-class shield generators that he had bought for them in the past.

Aurelia, Andraste and Marvaine briefly left their mother\'s side in order to hug Ves\' solid form.

"It\'s alright, children. Your father is here. Nothing will happen to you while I am here. We will all be safe."

"Meow meow."

Miaow.

The two cats puffed themselves up as if to say that they could protect the children as well!

"Do you know what is happening, Ves?" Gloriana asked as she moved closer.

Ves shook his head. "Nope. I have a few guesses, but it won\'t change anything. I think that this won\'t last too long, though. The aliens are expending such an enormous effort that they are probably expending massive amounts of energy at an unsustainable rate."

The Phase King kept track of the spatial disturbances and sensed that it was rising to a crescendo.

At this time, even Ves could feel as if he could join the choir in his own power!

"Just stay calm, okay? I don\'t think the phase whales are attempting to destroy their entire dwarf galaxy... 1 think."

"YOU THINK!?"

Ves ignored the rising concern of his wife and turned around to check how his clan and everyone was faring.

The data feeds showed that the vast majority of his clansmen had entered their designated shelters. The few Larkinsons left outside had undertaken various essential duties such as operating the control centers and piloting the mechs assigned to defend the Cat Nest.

All of the expert pilots of the Larkinson Clan had chosen to deploy around the Cat Nest or the expeditionary fleet in orbit depending on where they were stationed.

Even Venerable Jannzi Larkinson and Venerable Zimro Belson had opted to hop inside the cockpits of their new mechs and activate them straight away!

In this deepest state of emergency, the two expert pilots had chosen to put their trust in their new and largely untested machines rather than the sturdy shelters.

Ves quickly activated a communication channel to both the Dullahan Project and the Phobos!

"Keep your mechs in place! Don\'t emerge on the surface unless 1 give the orders or until you deem it necessary to deploy outside. 1 don\'t know what is about to happen, but please do not expose our new trump cards prematurely, alright?"

"Roger that, Ves." Jannzi answered.

"I can deploy outside without anyone taking notice if I activate the stealth system." Zimro spoke.

"Hmmm... the stealth capabilities of your Phobos haven\'t been tested as of yet. Let\'s not take any chances. Remain underground unless the situation changes, have I made myself clear?"

"Yes... sir."

Ves briefly checked with the state of his fleet. Fortunately, most of his spacers were consummate professionals who knew exactly what they needed to do in the outbreak of a crisis.

His allies were doing fairly good as well. The Glory Seekers and the Cross Clan had experienced so many dangers alongside the Larkinson Clan that their emergency responses were all quick and efficient.

The recently joined Adelaide Third Fleet and the Boojay Family were a bit slower to complete their emergency measures, but they were not that bad compared to other pioneering groups.

As for the rest of the people and organizations in Davute... they were a mixed bag at best. Rioting had already erupted in a couple of cities while masses of confused civilians did not know what to do after they learned about the state of emergency that dropped out of the blue.

None of this mattered to Ves. He and his clan had already did everything they could.

Powerful shield generators came to life. The Cat Nest became surrounded by several layers of energy shields. This was the final guarantee that could save the main base of the Larkinson Clan on this planet from a crashing asteroid or starship.

Many people across the Red Ocean were taking shelter in their own way.

Patriarch Reginald for example chose to pilot his Mars and fly high in the skies as if daring for the aliens to take a shot!

"COME AT ME, YOU FILTHY ALIENS! I AM NOT AFRAID!"

Master Benedict Cortez made the much more sensible choice of retreating to an underground shelter that was only moderately less defensible than the Larkinson Clan\'s best vault.

He let out a tired breath as he monitored the situation. "Is there no place in the cosmos where I can find peace?"

Many other people throughout Davute took shelter as well. Even President Yenames Clive had been evacuated from his floating palace so that he could take shelter in the Davute Pocket Space that his state had recently taken over!

"Are you sure that it is wise to hide inside a pocket space when the aliens are in the process of disturbing the space around us?" The man questioned his protectors.

"If anything happens to you, the vice-president shall take over your office." Madame Reina Kernsk remarked.

Many more humans across the new frontier made their own preparations.

On the planet of New Scimitar IV, Matriarch Xiaphna Wodin, Constance Wodin, Amarintha Wodin, Kellandra Wodin and many other members of the Wodin Dynasty had retreated to several deep shelters.

Despite the distressing situation, none of the Hexers gave in to their despair!

Compared to the disastrous fall of their original home state, the latest emergency did not sound so bad.

Many of the Hexers who had entered the shelters spontaneously fell to their knees and began to pray to the Supreme Mother.

"Please, oh great Mother, give us your blessing and protect us from the threat posed by the aliens and the Fridaymen."

Far away in an entirely different zone, the Polymath remained impassive as she remained rooted in her base of operations.

Her mind was connected to a vast network that enabled her to keep track of a lot of developments and issue many different instructions.

At no point did she ever stop doing what she could to make this better for the humans in the Red Ocean!

As for Divine Irene Mox who had only recently arrived in the Red Ocean, she could only growl impatiently as her Ragnarök flew towards the nearest source of disturbance.

It was a pity that it would take too long for her god mech to arrive and make any difference!

"I SHOULD HAVE COME SOONER AND BLOWN ALL OF THOSE PHASE WHALES INTO PIECES." She growled.

As the people of the Red Ocean continued to get ready for what was about to come, the humans who were in the Milky Way grew concerned as well.

Many of their friends and families had relocated to the new frontier! To find out that a danger had arisen that would have a massive effect on the dwarf galaxy distressed them as well!

Of course, many of the people left behind in the old galaxy also felt incredibly grateful that they hadn\'t acted impulsively.

Back inside the strongest vault of the Larkinson Clan, Ves suddenly looked up as he sensed a drastic change in the fabric of space.

"IT\'S HAPPENING!" Ves shouted in warning just seconds before the great event took place!

Far away from Davute, twenty-seven primary Tide Stations and an unknown amount of phase whales and phase lords all exerted their power in total harmony!

Each and every piece of phasewater in the Red Ocean activated to a small extent.

This included the minute concentration of phasewater in Ves\' bloodstream!

His eyes widened as he could feel as if he was connected to a grand web that the native aliens had weaved throughout the entirety of the Red Ocean!

"AHHH!" He screamed as he felt as if the web had ripped a lot of energy from him all of a sudden!

"AAAAAAAAHH!"

Everyone else screamed as they felt as if they were pushed through a blender!

Space itself seemed to convulse and vomit for a couple of seconds before everything turned stable again!

The lights briefly flickered as the various electronic systems received various degrees of disturbances.

Though all of the systems appeared to be working fine, the same could not be said for all of the people that had just lived through a violent spatial event of massive proportions!

"Ughh..."

Ves groaned and tried his best to shake off his abrupt pain and weariness. "Situation report... 1 need a situation report! What is going on? Did anyone get killed!"

It took half a minute before the first reports came in. The mech pilots outside had experienced similar disturbances, but otherwise noted that everything seemed fine."

Ves could feel that the spatial disturbances had completely come to an end. The Phase King concurred as well, but he began to report a lot of changes that he couldn\'t immediately decipher.

"Ah, shut up, please!" Ves groaned as he held his head in pain.

The other design spirits started to report various changes as well! They were greatly affected by what the phase whales had just pulled!

Some of the messages sounded so alarming to Ves that he immediately wanted to gain confirmation!

"Give me a feed of the surface!"

A projection appeared before him that showed the Cat Nest and its surroundings.

Ves controlled the view so that it pointed upwards. The blue skies looked as normal as ever. No flaming asteroids or deranged phase whales were descending from orbit.

His eyes started to narrow as he noticed that the skies had taken on a faint golden cast. It was as if time had advanced to the evening, which wasn\'t supposed to be the case!

"Give me a feed... of our fleet up in orbit."

The projection changed to show a panoramic view of the ships of the Larkinson Clan.

Each of them looked fine and untouched, which made Ves feel relieved. His fleet was his most important base and his guarantee that he could survive anything the aliens pulled off this time.

Yet as his gaze immediately shifted to the surroundings, his Jutland organ almost froze.

"Where... is the red?"

Gloriana slowly shuffled to his side. "It... is gone. There is no red anymore. It\'s... gold now. Everything is gold and yellow like the star of the Sol System."

More and more people who accessed similar feeds became completely gobsmacked by the sight.

The Red Ocean was called this way because of the reddish nebulas and cosmic dust that were ubiquitous throughout the dwarf galaxy!

The red space junk hadn\'t actually disappeared. Numerous sensors showed that they were still present and unchanged.

The difference was that a more powerful light source had emerged that had overpowered the color that had given the Red Ocean its name!

Ves narrowed his eyes and began to manipulate the sensor controls. He shifted the view in another direction and employed a few filters that clarified a few details.

"That... is not the Milky Way." He stated.

The familial disc-shaped galaxy that had always been a relatively small but noticeable presence in the skies of the Red Ocean had disappeared!

In its place was a considerably larger and much more luminous yellow globe!

The size and power of this globe was so great that it had changed the background color of the Red Ocean itself!

Ves quickly noticed another peculiarity and began to zoom in. The projected view continually magnified until it spotted a strong jet of matter coursing through what appeared to be thousands of light-years of space.

This powerful jet was one of the reasons why the Red Ocean had become engulfed in so much foreign radiation!

Already the strong background radiation that previously coursed through empty space was beginning to collide against the starships, planets, moons and other objects of the Red Ocean!

Though the radiation did not appear to be strong enough to overwhelm most forms of radiation shielding, who knew whether that was true.

The new space elements could produce all kinds of harmful effects to humans and their technology!

He already came to the conclusion that everything had changed. Life as he knew it could never proceed according to the previous pattern.

"What... is that, Ves?" Gloriana asked, though her voice betrayed that she may have already guessed the frightening answer to her question.

"If I am not mistaken... that is the relativistic jet of matter ejected by a supermassive black hole." Ves slowly replied. "It spans over 5000 light-years I think... I know where we are now. This jet along with that huge spherical golden galaxy matches the description of Messier 87. It is one of the larger galaxies that humanity has discovered in space, and also holds one of the heaviest supermassive black holes that our astronomers have discovered. This galaxy is supposed to be a lot further away from the Red Ocean than now, though. We should normally be separated from it by over 50 million light-years. For Messier 87 to appear too large and prominent, it can only mean one thing."

Not just Gloriana, but every other Larkinson in the vault opened their ears to what their patriarch was about to say next!

Ves\' face turned incredibly ugly at this point!

"The indigenous aliens... somehow teleported the entire Red Ocean and everyone inside it over 50 million light-years away. This dwarf galaxy has completely left the neighborhood of our home galaxy and has fallen into orbit of Messier 87, a supergiant elliptical galaxy located in the center of the Virgo Cluster!"